I’m so excited to return to The Weitzman Museum for a special concert with my magical musical friend Rachael Sage on Thursday Aug 21. We will both be performing our original music on the main stage, trading songs and stories, and previewing the upcoming season at Philadelphia’s incredible Weitzman National Museum of American Jewish History.
Come for the music, stay for the after-party schmooze and exhibit previews. Don’t miss it!
Thursday, August 21, 7pm For Tickets & Concert Info: Register HERE
Featured in The Jewish Exponent:
“Both of these voices are two pieces to the puzzle that expresses what it means to be Jewish in America in 2025. To really get the full understanding of how they fit into that story, you have to come and hear the artists.” …
Today is International Holocaust Remembrance Day, and I’m thinking about my grandfather.
My grandfather was a great singer. The music world he came from was very different than mine. And yet, the more time we spent together performing, the more I got to know him as a person and as a musician, the more I became influenced and inspired by him and his story. You may be surprised to know that my grandfather’s story of survival and his music had a lot to do with me recording my latest album Catching Leaves.
I’m so proud of my album Catching Leaves and I hope you’ve been enjoying it too. Let it be the soundtrack to your Autumn.
Here are some nice things people have been saying about it:
“Wisnia writes with a gentle touch, reflecting on love and loss as he crafts a tender ode to living in the moment, to surrendering to forces beyond our control and finding peace in growth, change, and acceptance. A riveting collection.” -Vents Magazine
“Effortlessly cinematic and well-rounded, allowing us to explore Wisnia’s vast creative abilities. Catching Leaves reminds us to live in the moment with sweet hints of jazz and roots” -BuzzMusic
“Gorgeous and colorful, orchestral and lush, beautiful and enticing.” -Recording Artists Guild
“A quite mesmerizingly beautiful new album” -Exclusive Magazine
“A reflective piece of work, full of the feelings and the detail of love and loss. Wisnia shows his range and warmth as he sings these contemplative songs. As his voice rises and falls, and as the notes tumble from the piano, it is the lyrical honesty and sincerity in the performance that disarm the listener.” -Andrew Frolish, Americana UK
“Avi Wisnia’s new album is a long time in coming and the timing is perfect. His ode to loss and sadness seems perfect for this time of year as well as something we can all relate to. The perfect fall record.” -Luke Poling, Rock and Roll Grad School Podcast
We made it home to find out that “How Saba Kept Singing” – the documentary about my grandfather’s story of survival and our return to Poland as a family – made the Top 20 Audience Award List at the Hot Docs Canadian International Documentary Festival where it had its World Premiere. Out of more than 200 featured documentaries at the festival, these were the favorites!
The film premiere of “How Saba Kept Singing” in Toronto was an incredible experience. A beautiful theater, a great audience, a wonderful reception. People were laughing and crying, and applauding.
And then, to be invited up to perform, to perform a new song I wrote that premieres in the film, to perform a song my grandfather composed while a prisoner in Auschwitz, to have my music as a part of this project, to have my music intertwined forever with my grandfather’s,… it is the honor of my life.
Some early press and reviews for the documentary “How Saba Kept Singing”:
“HOW SABA KEPT SINGING is a towering achievement that moved me both to tears and laughter and, in a perfect world, Avi Wisnia deserves an Academy Award nomination for Best Original Song.” Read More in Mr. Will Wong reviews.
“How Saba Kept Singing” seeks to understand how Polish Jewish teenager David Wisnia survived nearly three years in Auschwitz. [It] lends a sense of urgency and poignancy to firsthand accounts of how survivors managed to endure and to move on.” Read More in Variety Magazine.
Oh, and Hillary Clinton tweeted about it.
We were speaking to so many warm and wonderful people after the premiere of “How Saba Kept Singing” that we missed our chance to get our picture taken as a family on the red carpet. I think this turned out much better.
Thank you Toronto for the warm welcome. This might be the end of our journey in Canada, but this is just the beginning of the journey for this film. Big congratulations to the director Sara Taksler, and all the people at Retro Report, Hidden Light, Burnt Umber and the Hot Docs Festival – thank you for making this such a memorable and meaningful experience.
For everyone interested in seeing the film who could not attend the premiere in Toronto, there will be a public premiere once the film has a distributor. We really cannot wait for you to see it. Stay tuned!
Thanks to the fantastic folk duo Rusty and Jan for having me on as the first guest for their new radio show featuring Philadelphia music. Catch the interview with some of my featured songs from the new album Catching Leaves, now on YouTube:
